Fugitive claims to be man who died in 1983

WILMINGTON, NC — An accused fugitive who police say escaped while serving a 20-year prison sentence for drug trafficking claims he's a man who died in Virginia nearly three decades ago.

The Associated Press

WILMINGTON, NC — An accused fugitive who police say escaped while serving a 20-year prison sentence for drug trafficking claims he's a man who died in Virginia nearly three decades ago.

The man who North Carolina authorities say is Charles Sparks, 69, drove off from a Florida prison in a car he had been cleaning as part of an inmate work crew, the StarNews of Wilmington reported Sunday.

However, the man told the newspaper during a jailhouse interview that he is William Bolyn Garrett of Danville, Va. Police and Garrett's family say the man died in 1983 at age 43.

Sparks told the paper he couldn't talk about his case until it was resolved, but he did make reference to being a fugitive in his comments.

"Just as soon as everything is settled up, maybe I'll write a book on how it is to be a fugitive for 30 years and other things prior to that, and how it is to die in prison," he said. "How about flying in loads of drugs into the United States, having skirmishes with other armies in other countries of the world, things like that."

Sparks is being held at the New Hanover County Jail and is charged with financial identity fraud, false pretense and being a fugitive. He said he had been living on a boat somewhere in South Carolina before he was arrested last week at a Wilmington Social Security office. He had applied for benefits to pay medical bills after suffering a heart attack about five months ago.

A Social Security employee notified police after a supervisor confirmed that Bill Garrett was dead. Investigators identified Sparks through fingerprints in an FBI database.

Sparks said he had been living on a boat that had two bedrooms, a bathroom, living room, kitchen and space in the back to fish.

Sparks had served about two years of his sentence when he escaped while working on a car wash detail, according to a Florida Department of Corrections news release. Sparks told the paper he was born and raised in the Virginia mountains and has been remodeling homes and businesses for about three decades. He said he's lived in North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia.

Garrett's twin brother, 70-year-old Bob Garrett, said he was surprised to hear someone had been using his brother's identity.

"I would like to know how he did it," Bob Garrett said. "How he got the information. And the only way I think we'll ever know is if he confesses."